A Second Chance
by nefer-05
Summary: Life has been boring for Sarah since she went to the Labyrinth. When Jareth comes back, offering her a second chance with him, what will she do?
1. Default Chapter

Okay....this is my first Labyrinth fanfic so please be nice! Heck, this is my first fanfic ever! Well, the story starts off 1 1/2 years after Sarah left the Labyrinth, but when Jareth comes back(cue the dramatic music)...da da dum!!! What will she do? Sorry, it is 4 AM, kinda hyper, and here I am writing fanfics......  
  
Disclaimer: Sadly, I own none of these characters or any of the Labyrinth.....sniffles....:-(  
  
  
  
  
Sarah Williams sat in her room, trying to concentrate on the rather boring algebra assignment that was due the next day. Ever since her escapade in the Labyrinth, life had just seemed dull. Her stepmother continued to gripe incessantly, her father was always away at work or business meetings, Toby, although she loved him, still cried and whined, and she still didn't get along well at school.   
Sigh...life just stank, like it always had. Well, at least since her parents had gotten divorced. Before then, life had been great. She knew that her mom and dad had been fighting, and the divorce was for the best, but still... When her parents had announced the news, Sarah had at first been terribly upset, she even locked herself in her room and refused to eat or sleep. Sarah missed her mom, but she was an actress, and that meant she was very busy and always off somewhere making movies. So because of that, Sarah moved in with her dad. Things turned from bad to worse when her father married that witch-woman. Her father seemed to think a "woman around the house" would be a good thing. Not when the woman was Linda. Then came Toby, her half-baby brother. Sarah loved him, really she did, but he could just be so irritating at times. "It's sad, really", she thought to herself. "One of my best friends is a two-year, and half the time he annoys the heck out of me."   
It was true that Toby was one of her only friends. At school, everyone saw her as an outsider, somewhat of a freak. It wasn't that she didn't try to make friends, at first she had gone out of her way to be friendly to people, they just seemed to have it in for her. So she decided to quit trying, what was the use anyway, to be nice to someone who hates you? She'd much rather keep to herself anyway. She enjoyed immersing herself in her own fantasy world. But she never would have dreamed that that fantasy world would become a reality.   
It had been a year and a half ago, but she still remembered it very clearly. She had been having a perfectly beautiful day in the park practicing lines from her favorite book, The Labyrinth. Just when she had gotten to the climax, she realized she was late for babysitting Toby. As if being late weren't bad enough, she had been caught in a thunderstorm, and once she was finally home, Linda decided it would be fun to reprimand her harshly for being late. Ugh.... Why did her father marry that woman? After her parents had left to go out for dinner, Toby would not stop crying. So she had called on the goblins to take him away. Sarah never thought it would work. That there actually were such things as goblins and that they would come take her brother away. That had been so terrifying, standing there in the dark after she realized Toby was gone from his crib, hearing things scurrying around in the dark. Then he appeared.  
She knew who he was the moment she saw him. He stood there in front of the open window in a black cape and breeches with an amused grin on his face. The Goblin King. She hadn't expected him to be that handsome, quite frankly, although she'd never let him know that. At that moment she was already regretting her hasty wish making, and definitely not above begging. And that was what she had done. The Goblin King had been generous, well at least according to himself, in giving her a second chance at getting Toby back. He gave her 13 hours in which to solve the Labyrinth. If she got through the Labyrinth, to the center of the castle, in that amount of time, Toby would be hers again. Otherwise, the Goblin King would keep him forever. And probably turn him into a goblin.   
Sarah closed her eyes and called to mind all the challenges and hardships she encountered in the Labyrinth. More than she could remember. It had been much, much harder than she had expected. If it hadn't been for her friends she made in the Labyrinth, she never would have made it. Oh, Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus. They were such good friends. She'd never had any friends like that in this world. People here in the Aboveground had no loyalty. Those final moments in the castle with the Goblin King had been a blur. She recalled being in the Escher Room, where it was possible to walk on walls, upside-down, sideways, anyway you could think of. He had been there, the Goblin King.... Jareth.   
All she could think of at that moment was getting Toby back. Jareth had seemed so desperate about something...what was it? She racked her brain for what it was that made him seem so worried. "He said something about...how I turned his world upside down.... Moving the stars for no one...Then when we finally came face to face, he had made me an offer...damn, what was it? I was so worried about getting Toby back, that I never even paid attention to what he was saying...I wish I could know what Jareth said to me. Damn." She suddenly noticed a slight chill in the air and got up to go close her window. As she stood near the window, chills ran down her spine as she felt a gloved hand on her shoulder, and heard the whisper in her ear, "Look, Sarah. Look what I am offering you. Your dreams. I ask for so little. Just let me rule you, and you can have everything that you want. Just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave."   
She gasped in shock as she realized what was happening. She had unknowingly opened a door for the Goblin King. And that door was the one to her room. Sarah whirled around and met Jareth face to face. He looked not a day older, although she had aged almost two years. One arm circled around her waist, bringing her closer to him, while the other hand swept around her back. He looked deeply into her eyes...she had never had anyone stare at her that intensely, why did he do that? "I made that offer to you over a year ago, and you declined," he continued. "Now, I am giving you another chance at happiness, what will it be?"  
  
  
  
Okay, that's just the first chapter! There will be more, hopefully, if I stay on my lazy butt and write more.... 


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to an anonymous person who informed me that Sarah's stepmother is *Karen,* not *Linda*...Linda's her real mom. OOPS! Sorry about that one. Ok...here's the second chapter....  
  
  
  
  
  
Sarah stood in disbelief. Her heart was racing and her breath came in quick and sharp. "This could be just another trick of his," she thought to herself. She looked up into his face, searching for some sign. Did he really mean what he just said? "Are you serious? I mean, do you really care about me, or is this just a sick joke?" Sarah questioned him. Jareth smirked, as if he had been expecting she would say this.   
"You still haven't grown up have you, Sarah? I thought maybe if I waited, gave you some more time, that you would wake up and realize. But no, I see that you are still a child." He turned away from her. "Why, Jareth, why do you have to care so much about this silly human girl?" He thought to himself. "After all, she's just a child..." But he knew in his heart that this was the very reason he loved Sarah so much. She had such fire and spirit, like none he had ever seen. Before her, no one had ever conquered his Labyrinth. Each child who had wished their poor sibling away tried in desperate vain to solve the Labyrinth, and each had been sent home in defeat. But she had been different. She, who was nothing but a whiny, sniveling girl who cared for nothing except herself, had defeated him. This was why he loved her. She was the only person who had ever matched him, who could be seen as his equal.   
"But I'm not a child!" Sarah cried. "I've grown so much since you last saw me, really." He whirled around to face her. He took a step closer to her. Sarah trembled, though she didn't know why. He wrapped his arms around her waist, for the second time that night, and drew her close to him. "Look at me," he commanded. She sensed the authorative tone in his voice, and slowly raised her eyes to meet his. "Listen; don't speak," he instructed. "Just tell me, will you come back to the Underground with me? I assure you that you will be well treated, and you are free to leave if you choose. Just come back with me, I promise that you won't regret it." She stood indecisively, wondering if she should go or not. Her life here wasn't exactly what you could call great, and she had been happy during her brief visit Underground. But why did he need her to come with him so badly? Why did he stare at her like that, like she was the only person in the universe? Could it be that he loved her? No, that was ridiculous. Handsome goblin kings didn't love ordinary mortal girls like herself. She thought for another moment. "You promise me that I can leave if I ever choose to?" "Yes," he reassured her. "Just stay for at least a few weeks or so. Then you can decide if you want to stay or leave." There was a hot glow to his eyes she had never seen before, in anyone's eyes. He looked like an eager child on Christmas morning, hoping he would get presents instead of switches or coal, but not knowing really which he would receive. She cast her eyes down for a second, then looked back up. "Yes, I will go with you, but only if you keep your word." He smiled devilishly; "A fae's word is as good as gold." With that, they were both sent back to the Underground in a swirl of glitter.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Sorry this chapter was kinda short.... Anyways...more later. 


	3. Chapter 3

Hmmmmm.......what will happen next, now that Sarah has agreed to Jareth's offer....hehe, to find out, you must READ!!! READ MY MINIONS!!! AHAHAHAHAHHA!!  
  
  
  
  
  
When Sarah awoke she found herself in strange, yet beautiful surroundings. She was lying in a huge four-poster canopy bed, blanketed by deep purple satin sheets. The canopy was the same shade of purple, yet was sheer and flowy. The room was furnished with an ornately carved mahogany dresser and mirror. Sarah stretched and yawned, and got up to explore the room. She wandered into the large closet and found dozens of elegant dresses. She pulled out the simplest one, which by no means could be called simple, and changed into that and out of her nightgown. The rich green hue of the dress complimented her eyes as well as complexion, and the full skirt accentuated her tiny waist. She meandered out of the closet and over to the dresser. Sarah sat down in the cushioned chair and leaned forward to inspect her reflection.   
  
"Hmmm..... I could use some makeup," she murmured to herself. She opened the red velvet box and found it full of cosmetics. She began applying eye shadow and eyeliner, then some blush and lip-gloss. She got up from the chair and wandered over to a full-length mirror, and admired herself. She truly was beautiful. As she was fluffing her hair (hey, big hair was in in the 80's lol) she thought she saw a pair of mysterious eyes watching her. She swiveled around to see what it was, but saw nothing. "Oh well. Probably just my imagination." When she faced back to the mirror, she saw Jareth standing there, wearing a white pirate-looking shirt, gray tights with knee-high black boots, (ooh yeah :-) along with that trademark grin of his . She stood there, afraid that if she turned back around he would disappear again.   
  
But he didn't disappear. Instead, he walked toward her and embraced her from behind. "Good morning, my love," he whispered softly into her ear. Sarah's heart was pounding like a jackrabbit's. "Why does he always have that affect on me?" She wondered. "It can't be love. He doesn't love me, and I don't love him....so why does he make me feel like this?" She stood up stiff and straight, her eyes looking forward at their reflection in the mirror. She saw the same glimmer in his eyes she had seen the night before. That same innocent hopefulness. Jareth smiled softly at Sarah. He placed a gloved hand gently beneath her chin, and slowly turned her head to face him. He leaned in gradually and placed his mouth on hers. Sarah became lost in the beautiful moment. His soft lips on hers, gently caressing her mouth. It was heaven.   
  
When they had finished kissing, Jareth held Sarah soothingly in his arms. Any doubts Sarah had had were obliterated from that moment on. "I....I think I love you," she said quietly. He smiled softly. "I have been waiting for you to say that for so long, Sarah." "I...I'm sorry it took me so long to realize. Jareth, I must have loved you for years, I was just too stupid to realize." The look on his face was understanding and kind. "I know Sarah. I knew that you needed time. You were still very much a child, you still are, but you understand now. I would have waited forever for you." They clung to each other for a few more moments, when suddenly; Jareth bent down and scooped Sarah up in his arms. "Come my darling, I want to show you something." Another shower of glitter, much like the one that had taken them Underground, engulfed them and they were swept away to a beautiful garden.   
  
Sarah marveled at the exquisite and utterly breath-taking beauty of the garden. Exotic flowers shone brightly in a multitude of colors. Fountains decorated with ivory cherubs fed clear water into crystal springs. Birds sang, and an assortment of wild creatures played happily. "Oh, Jareth, it's beautiful!" Sarah exclaimed." "I created it for you, my love. A place of beauty for the most beautiful woman alive," he replied. "Oh, thank you, Jareth! Thank you! No one's ever done such a nice thing for me. I love you so much..." "Sarah...." Jareth murmured. He took her hand in his and knelt to his knees. "You are the only woman I have ever loved," he continued, "and even though the time we have spent together has been short, it has been some of the happiest moments in my life. I've lived thousands of years, but eternity means nothing without you in which to spend it with. Ever since I first laid eyes on you, I have loved you. Loved you for that fiery spirit of yours, for your beauty, and for your charm. I see now that I can't live another day without you....Sarah, will you marry me?"   
  
  
  
  
  
  
Well......what do ye thinks now?? Not too corny hopefully.......hehe.....You will just have to wait until the next chapter to see what other fiendish plots my mind will concoct........MWAHAHAHAHA 


	4. Chapter 4

Weeeellll, this chapter is much better than the others, I do believe. Lotsa twists and turns in the plot.  
  
  
  
"Yes....Yes...." Sarah murmured. She leaned forward to kiss him. "Hmm...that's strange....it feels like I'm eating paper." she wondered. She opened her eyes. Yuck! She was eating paper! "Sick!" She pulled the remains of her soggy algebra homework out of her mouth. "Hmm...I must have fallen asleep at my desk....then, that means...it wasn't real. It was just a dream." Hot, angry tears filled her eyes and splashed down her cheeks. "IT'S NOT FAIR!!!" she screamed, overturning her desk in the process. He hadn't come back for her. Would he ever? If he didn't care for her, then why did he have to haunt her like this?   
  
"Maybe....maybe if I wished him to come back for me, maybe he would. But, what if he doesn't? What if I meant absolutely nothing to him? It was probably just a crazy dream." Suddenly Sarah had a longing to see Hoggle, the elderly dwarf who had accompanied her in the Labyrinth. "Hoggle! I need you, Hoggle." she chanted. WHOOSH! Although Hoggle's entrances weren't nearly as showy as Jareth's, Sarah always enjoyed watching him materialize before her.   
  
"I heard thet ye needed me, Sarah, so I come as quick as I could." "Oh, Hoggle," said Sarah, "Thank you for coming, I need someone to talk to." Hoggle saw the tears in her eyes. "Why, Sarah, why are ye cryin'? Is it somethin' that rat, Jareth, have done?" The mention of Jareth's name caused Sarah tears to increase fourfold. "You could say that. Oh Hoggle, I'm so confused! I just had this wonderful dream, it was so real, and when I woke up and saw that it wasn't real.....it was devastating." "What did ye dream of?" "You'll think I'm crazy. I already know that I think I'm crazy. But in the dream, Jareth was so nice. He was a completely different person from when I last saw him." "Ye could say that agin" Hoggle cut in. "What do you mean?" Sarah asked. "Well ever since you left, he ain't done nothin' but mope 'round the castle. Just sits there all day, watching you in them crystals of his." "You mean he's been watching me?!?" "Yep, every day, just sits there, watchin' ye, ever now and then he'll sigh, or go lock himself up in his room for a few hours. No one really knows why he's been actin' this way, but I have my suspicions." "Well," Sarah quavered, "why exactly do you think he acts like that?" "Cuz he's in love with ye. He loves ye, Sarah, he may not always take the most normal approach towards loving someone, but he loves ye."  
  
*Secret Chamber in Jareth's Castle* Jareth lounged in an over-sized throne gazing softly at the image in the crystal he was holding. She was so beautiful. If only she would call him, just once, he would come running to her. But instead she called for Hog-head or whatever his name was. Jareth could tell that the dream he sent Sarah had affected her, she was already beginning to fall in love with him. This time though, he would play his cards right. He had almost had her in the ballroom, if only she hadn't seen that cursed clock. He wasn't going to let her slip through his fingers again. No, this time, he'd find a way to make her his. Forever.   
  
  
  
Getting good, eh, my fellow fanfictionists? BTW, sorry if it insulted anyone when I put the words "Jareth" and "rat" together. It was Hoggle's doing, not mine. LOL 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five....  
  
  
  
  
Jareth paced up and down the cobblestone hallway. His plan was set and ready for action.  
Doubts and worries scattered throughout his mind. "What if it doesn't work?" He wondered out loud.   
"Will she really fall for it? Well, only one way to find out..." He gazed into the large crystal resting on the table. At his whim, Sarah's image appeared. She was sleeping. "So peaceful. One would think she were an angel dreaming." Jareth sighed. One lone tear welled up in his eye and trailed down his cheek. He could bear the torture of loneliness no longer.   
  
With his will renewed, he proceeded. Taking three small crystals in his hand, he went to the window and peered at the city below. One by one, he set the crystal on the ledge and watched each make its way through the air towards Sarah's house in the Aboveground. The crystals would make her dream, just as she had the night before. Only this dream was sure to make Sarah fall completely in love with him. Jareth felt a slight twinge of guilt. He knew it was unethical to trick Sarah into falling into love with him. "Oh, damn ethics!" He yelled. "They never got me anywhere. No, this is the only way she'll ever love me."   
  
He shivered. Not the kind of shiver you get from a cold evening or from a scary movie, it was the kind of shiver you got from a deep pain within your heart, an aching pain that seemed like it would never go away. "Soon," he thought. "Soon, it will be gone. I promise Sarah," he said as he gazed at the image of the sleeping girl, "Even though I may take you away from your home, and trick you into doing so; I will love you with all my heart." He turned from the room and made his way to his bedroom. The only thing to do was sleep. Sleep and wait until morning came.   
  
*Sarah's Dreams*  
  
Sarah was in a forest. The lush greenery engulfed her on all sides, but it was not intimidatingly so. She felt safe and secluded, hidden and sheltered from the world. She spied a doe and a spotted fawn leaping through the trees. Overhead, birds sang and soared in the azure skies. Up ahead she spotted a clearing, and decided to investigate. Sarah made her way through the thick tangle of growth. "A faerie ring!" She cried in delight. In the center of the clearing was a large circle of mushrooms, a perfect faerie ring. As a child, she had always found them in her back yard, but her mother had warned her never to step foot into one, or she would be trapped in the realm of faeries forever. Or at least, until someone came to pull her out. Even so, she had always wanted to put one foot in to see if the legends were really true. "You know," a voice said from behind her, "They say that if you put even one foot inside a faerie ring that you will be trapped inside the faerie realm for as long as they want you there." She spun around in shock. It was him. Jareth.   
  
  
  
  
  
I guess that's about it for Chp. 5. Ugh, it's not even late, and I'm already tired. I had to go march in the stupid parade this morning. Ewww icky. I'm going to sleep. Nitey-nite. 


	6. Chapter 6

FINALLY!!!!!! My masterpiece is finished. Well, I don't know if I should go as far as to call it a masterpiece, but anyways, it's done.   
  
  
  
  
Jareth was leaned up against a tree, his arms crossed, and a grin on his face. "Hello Sarah."   
She stood in disbelief. "This isn't real." She thought to herself. "It's just another dream." Why did he always haunt her dreams? "Why did you come here?" She questioned in anger. Her jaw was clenched and her eyes began to fill with tears. "I know this is just another stupid dream. It's not real. None of it's real." Jareth watched in amazement as the only person who had ever matched him burst into tears. He couldn't believe it. She who was tough as nails, the one who couldn't be beat by even faerie magic, was bawling like a baby. At that moment, any plans of conniving Sarah into falling in love with him vanished from his thoughts. He could see that she really loved him without the use of magic. From then on, he was going to be straightforward with her.   
  
He ran towards her and caught her into his arms. "There, it's going to be all right," he whispered soothingly as he stroked her hair. "Everything's going to be just fine." "NO! It's not all right!" Came the cry from the distraught girl. "None of this, you, the forest, none of it's real. It's all just a dream. The Labyrinth was real, I know that, but you. You were real. But you're not anymore. You're just a dream. I can never have you, Jareth." "Oh, Sarah," Jareth murmured softly as he smiled and looked into her eyes. "You have no idea how wrong you are. All you have to do is wake up, my darling. Just wake up and you will find that your dreams are real."   
  
*Back at Sarah's house* Karen tiptoed her way across the hall to check on her stepdaughter. She opened the door a crack and peered in. Sarah lay on her back, sleeping. She was breathing shallowly, and a smile was spread across her face. Karen smiled to herself; Sarah seemed so depressed here lately. That was the first time in a while that she had seen her stepdaughter really smile. Closing the door carefully, so as not to wake her, she made her way back to the bedroom.  
  
*Sarah's dream* She stared at Jareth intently. What was he talking about? "My dearest Sarah, just wake up."   
  
*Sarah's room* Sarah felt that the beautiful dream was over, and she was now waking up. She opened her eyes slowly and saw that it was still late. All her belongings were in their usual places, nothing seemed amiss. "So I guess it was just a dream," she sighed sadly. Through the darkness broke the clear sound of an English accent. "Did you forget everything I just told you?" Jareth laughed. "Jareth!" Sarah cried in ecstasy. She flew out of bed, and ran towards Jareth. He stood there with a crystal on his outstretched hand. "Make a wish Sarah." Her face lit up with joy. "I wish...I wish...to be back in the Underground with you, for always." He smiled and took them both back home. To the Underground.  
  
  
  
AWW.... Weren't that bee-u-itiful? I love happy endings. 


End file.
